


You Shine Like a Miracle

by zhyixingie



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Fluff, Hybrids, M/M, SO MUCH FLUFF, like wow theres way more fluff than i meant there to be
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-03
Updated: 2017-02-16
Packaged: 2018-09-06 05:33:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 17,206
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8736748
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zhyixingie/pseuds/zhyixingie
Summary: Kyungsoo found it very unfortunate that he met the guy of his dreams during finals week.In which Kyungsoo is a cat hybrid who just wants to make it through college, but Chanyeol ruins it for him.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Woo, writing something new for a change because idk college AU's are super fun and easy to write since I am in fact in university. Also wanted to write something fun and fluffy for a change.
> 
> Title from EXOCBX "Cherish"
> 
> [follow me on twitter to watch me slowly die every time i try to write a fic?](https://twitter.com/zhyixingie)

                Kyungsoo found it very unfortunate that he met the guy of his dreams during finals week.

                He was slouched over his laptop in the library, typing furiously because _‘when the FUCK did we learn about trp and lac operon in class??’_ His hair hadn’t been washed in at least three days and his sweatshirt in probably five, his glasses were perched on his nose, and he’s sure he looked like the definition of a hermit when the most gorgeous guy Kyungsoo could ever think of sat down next to him.

                “You look like you’re studying hard.”

                Kyungsoo had been about to throttle whatever stranger had thought it was a good idea to interrupt his thought process until he glanced up and saw said beautiful man. Kyungsoo had to force his jaw to not drop in surprise as he stared at the boy who started laughing heartily – revealing a mouth filled with perfect, straight white teeth and a smile that was definitely carved out of sunshine and rainbows.

                The guy was obviously tall, his lanky form having to curl in on itself to be able to sit in the small seats of the library, and his long legs were dangerously close to touching Kyungsoo’s feet (Kyungsoo also had to take a moment because ‘ _is this guy actually attractive or is he just tall?’_ He let his eyes skim over him one more time before deciding, _‘no, he’s pretty fucking gorgeous.’_ ) His eyes were bright and his smile seemed to be a permanent fixture on his face, but of course all good things are a devil in disguise because on top of his head of wavy brown hair sat perky _dog_ ears.

                Kyungsoo’s own cat ears were hidden under the hood of his sweatshirt, but they immediately flattened back against his skull when the overwhelming scent of _dog_ suddenly washed over him upon noticing the ears. He scrunched his face into the most menacing snarl he could muster, hopefully signaling to the gorgeous guy to get away from him, but the guy just laughed and opened his laptop. “What are you studying right now?” The guy asked, still trying to spark conversation as he fished out his earbuds to plug into his laptop.

                The guy hadn’t necessarily done anything wrong (yet) and Kyungsoo figured it would be rude not to respond, so he muttered, “Bio.”

                “250?” The dog squeaked, leaning over to look at Kyungsoo’s computer screen which he quickly brought closer to himself. “I’m in that class to! With Mr. Jung?” Kyungsoo nodded. “Weird, I’ve never seen you before – of course, there are like 500 people in that class.” Kyungsoo hummed in acknowledgement, knowing the dog probably hadn’t seen him because he always made sure to sit at the very back of the lecture hall as close to the exit as possible. “Have you figured out what a lac operon is? It’s in the study guide but I don’t remember learning it,” the dog mused, glancing over at his own notebook as though it’ll have the answer.

                “No,” Kyungsoo muttered.

                “Too bad,” The dog hummed. “We should study together! I need to study for it anyways and you’re already studying for it so we should work together.” Kyungsoo glared at the dog who wasn’t seeming to get the hint. “I’m Chanyeol! What’s your name?”

                “None of your business,” Kyungsoo huffed, finally slamming his laptop and shoving it in backpack. He swung the book filled bag onto his back and pulled his scarf around his neck.

                “Are you leaving?” Chanyeol said, voice way too loud for the library. “Please stay! I didn’t mean to make you mad!” Kyungsoo didn’t give him a response, instead turning on his heel and heading out of the quiet room, his tail swishing angrily behind him.

 

"There you are!" Jongdae screeched as Kyungsoo walked into their dorm room. Kyungsoo was always confused that the older was also a cat with how incredibly loud and peppy and cuddly he was - he seemed much more like a dog. Kyungsoo always found himself wincing at his roommate's loud greetings and then almost always had to shove the clingy cat off as he purred and rubbed his face against the smaller's cheek. "I thought you were dead Soo! You haven't been home in three days!" Jongdae whined as he flung himself at the other cat hybrid.

"I was at the library," Kyungsoo hissed, shoving at the others grabby hands. "My finals are gonna be the death of me, I took way too hard of classes this semester," he sighed and threw his bag onto his bed. Jongdae finally moved away from him and climbed onto his own bed, heels hanging off the side without touching the ground because of how high up it was lofted.

Kyungsoo grabbed a Dr. pepper out of the fridge before sitting at his desk. Jongdae's nose scrunched suddenly. "Dude, not gonna lie you kinda stink right now, but also you smell like _dog_."

"Yeah a Great Dane sat next to me in the library," Kyungsoo rolled his eyes. "He was getting a bit friendly and leaned really close to me." Jobgdae laughed.

"You never did learn how to handle dogs," Jongdae giggled. Kyungsoo shook his head - Jongdae was good with puppies because his dumb boyfriend Baekhyun was one. The corgi puppy was one of the most excitable, _annoying_ creatures Kyungsoo had ever met, but he had to admit Jongdae was pretty cute with him when he got the puppy to calm down and lay down for some cuddles and a movie - and when he told the corgi to leave Kyungsoo alone, that was always nice. "What was the guy's name?"

"Chanyung? Chanyeol? Something like that," Kyungsoo mumbled.

"No way!" Jongdae gasped. "Park Chanyeol? _Really_ tall, brunette Great Dane who smiles way too much?" Kyungsoo pointed at him and nodded.

"That's the one."

"No way!" Jondgae cheered again. "He's in Baek's frat! I've hung out with him a bunch - he and Baekhyun are like _best_ friends. They grew up together."

Kyungsoo groaned. Of course the obnoxious pooch from the library was friends with the annoying ass puppy his roommate was dating.

"If you ever came out with me you would have met him already," Jongdae wagged his finger at him.

"You know I don't like parties," Kyungsoo said. Jongdae and he had been friends in high school which is why they decided to room together - the other at _knew_ Kyungsoo didn't like loud or cramped places.

"You know what? We're gonna go out and have fun tonight," Jongdae declared, slamming his palms on his mattress. He jumped to the ground and continued talking before Kyungsoo could deny him, "We don't need to go to the frat or anything - just go out and do _something_. You're too wound up, you're gonna burst soon." Kyungsoo just rolled his eyes and got out his laptop.

"Nah, I'm good," he said simply.

"What if we went to the comic book store downtown?" Jondgae prompted.

Kyungsoo's black ears twitched and he turned around slowly. "Really?"

"Sure! Baek has a car now because his dad got a new one, so he can drive us."

Kyungsoo thought for a moment. Hanging out with Baekhyun was not ideal, but Jondgae was probably right that he should get out for a bit - he felt ready to explode with all the information he was trying to shove and store in his brain. Plus he _had_ really been wanting the latest Deadpool volume. "Fine," he agreed. "But if your boyfriend touches me I'm going to scratch him."

"Fair enough," the other cat nodded.

"And I need to go shower first."

"Good call, your hair is looking a bit greasy, man."

Kyungsoo flipped him off before grabbing his shampoo and towel.

 

The comic book store was a tiny little shop that you wouldn’t even notice if you drove past it. It was surrounded by other, bigger name stores, and it was tucked away in the back of a brick building with only one small sign to say it even existed. Kyungsoo had found it at the beginning of his first semester when he was trying to find somewhere quiet to tuck himself away from all the city noise. Kyungsoo had always loved reading, but going to college meant much less time for his precious novels, so instead he started reading manga and comic books to satisfy his cravings while also sparing his time. He’d torn his way through most of the comics the tiny shop had, and he was only a sophomore, and eventually they started holding new releases for him.

“Kyungsoo!” greeted the pretty woman at the counter. Kyungsoo always liked her – she was an otter hybrid with her hair dyed seaweed green, and she was always very perky but not too loud. He raised his hand in greeting and walked over to the cash register while Baekhyun and Jongdae raced into the further depth of the store to the board and card games in the back. “We have a few comics for you, sweetie,” the otter squeaked happily. Kyungsoo never knew why she always called him ‘sweetie’ and ‘honey’ and other cute kid names, because he was almost positive she went to the same college as they did so couldn’t have been too much older.

“Thank you,” Kyungsoo grinned at her as she handed him a bag filled with single issues and a few trade paper backs.

“No problem, honey,” she cooed, fanning at her face. “Your smile is just too adorable! You should do it much more often – you’d find yourself a girlfriend in an instant.” Kyungsoo blushed at her words before mumbling another ‘thank you’ and going to find his roommate and the obnoxious boyfriend.

Baekhyun and Jongdae were arguing over whether to buy more booster packs of Magic the Gathering cards, or to get the new Munchkins game that had just come out. “It has completely new cards, Dae!” Baekhyun whined, shoving the box at his boyfriend. “We haven’t gotten any of the new ones and I want to play this one!”

“But you also said you wanna finish your red deck,” the cat pointed out. “And you don’t have enough money for both.”

The corgi pouted, staring down at the card game in his hands before shoving it angrily back on the shelf and instead grabbing several sleeves of Magic cards. Baek looked over at Kyungsoo and his tail immediately started wagging, “Did you get your comics, Soo?” He asked excitedly.

Kyungsoo nodded, glancing down at the paper bag hanging off his arm. “Yeah, I did,” he confirmed.

“We should also go out for dinner,” Jongdae declared. “I’m sick of dining hall food.”

“Ya know, that sounds a lot like I would be third wheeling you guys,” Kyungsoo pointed out. It was one thing going with the boyfriends to a comic book store, it was another to go to dinner with them.

“No you wouldn’t be, Soo!” Baekhyun cooed, looking very close to wrapping Kyungsoo in a hug before he remembered he wanted to keep all his fingers. “Or, I could always ask my friend to come with us – he works in town anyways,” the dog said, pulling out his phone and tapping away. “Where did you guys wanna go?”

“Sushi,” Kyungsoo and Jongdae said immediately.

Baekhyun rolled his eyes, “ _Cats_ ,” he mumbled as he continued texting.

“Wait, wait, wait,” Kyungsoo put his hands up. “ _Which_ friend are you asking to join us?” He questioned.

“I doubt you’d know any of the guys at the frat,” Baekhyun laughed. “You never come out with us,” he pointed out.

“Kyungsoo met one of them at the library,” Jongdae purred. “Park Chanyeol – the Great Dane.”

Baekhyun blinked for a second in confusion before his tail started wagging again, “Really? You met Chan? How’d you like him?” The corgi asked immediately, crowding Kyungsoo’s personal space, making the cat hiss at him.

“He was nosy and smelt gross,” Kyungsoo responded as he stepped away from the dog hybrid.

“Well he was the one I was inviting,” Baekhyun whined and held up his phone. “And I already texted him – are you really gonna make me be rude and say never mind? He’s my big brother at the frat, it’d make me look bad. Plus, he’s like my best friend.” Kyungsoo crossed his arms and grumbled ‘no, I guess that’s fine, but you’re paying for my dinner’ and the corgi and brunette cat hybrids cheered.

                The sushi shop was just a block down the road, even closer to the campus than the comic book store, and was packed with people when they walked in, making Kyungsoo’s hair stand on end. This was why he didn’t like going out on weekends – it meant crowds of people and people brushing up against him and _people._ Jongdae insisted that they still just grab a table and try to get dinner anyways, even if they’d have to wait a little bit, so they three of them sat at a four person booth and took out their menus. This place had the best sushi, but it also had Kyungsoo’s favorite bibimbap, making him chew the side of his mouth as he weighed his options. He was so deep in concentration, debating between a tempura shrimp roll and the rice bowl, that he didn’t even notice the looming presence making its way over to their table.

                “Hey guys!”

                Kyungsoo jumped at the booming voice, ears pressing back against his head as he glared up at the excited Great Dane. He was dressed in black pants and a black button up and _fuck no he didn’t look good in all black – not at all_ and his tail was wagging as fast as Baekhyun’s which Kyungsoo had trouble believing because of how much energy the corgi had. _A dog that big would probably kill someone if they got as excited as Baek did_ , Kyungsoo thought – considering Baekhyun was only a smidge taller than Kyungsoo while this guy could probably eat him as a snack.

                “Hey Chanyeol,” Baekhyun greeted happily. “You remember Jongdae, right?” Chanyeol nodded, still reaching out to shake the other cat’s hand as he took his seat on Kyungsoo’s side of the booth. He squished himself as close to the wall as possible since the Great Dane seemed to take up so much goddamn space.

                “Nice to see you again,” Chanyeol grinned.

                “You too, man,” Jongdae purred.

                “And this is Kyungsoo! He’s Jongdae’s roommate – but he told me you guys met earlier today,” Baekhyun pointed out. Kyungsoo glared at the dog in annoyance for putting him in the spotlight.

                If possible, the giant dog’s tail wagged faster as he turned to look at Kyungsoo. “Your name is Kyungsoo? What a cute name,” Chanyeol cooed. “He wouldn’t tell me it when I saw him this morning,” he pouted when he turned back to Baekhyun. “I thought I made him mad but then Kris told me cats are just moody when it comes to dogs.”

                “Not all cats are,” Jongdae protested. “I hang out at your frat all the time. Plus, Kyungsoo just hates everyone – not just dogs.”

                “I do not,” Kyungsoo hissed.

                “Yeah you do,” Baekhyun backed up his boyfriend. “You’re really very antisocial and pessimistic,” the corgi laughed at the glares the cat threw him. “Maybe spending some time with dogs would make you more fun!”

                “Yeah you should come to our house!” Chanyeol said excitedly, turning back to the cat who was still huddled against the wall. “There’s only a couple brothers who actually live there and they’re all really fun! Like Kris – he’s a Saint Bernard – and Luhan – he’s a terrier – and Minseok – he’s a Pomeranian! And obviously me and Baekhyun too! It’s a lot of fun!” Kyungsoo rubbed at his ears at how loud the dog was speaking – he was like a permanent exclamation point.

                “There’s a _reason_ I don’t like dogs,” Kyungsoo grumbled.

                “Why?” Chanyeol prompted.

                “They’re loud and smelly and gross and will fuck anything with a pulse,” Kyungsoo hissed, glaring at Chanyeol. The dog’s tail finally stopped wagging and his ears drooped. “Sorry that I don’t feel like going into a house full of them without Jongdae’s protection of dating one of them! I don’t feel like getting jumped,” Kyungsoo huffed.

                “That’s such a generalization,” Baekhyun said, his brow furrowing. Kyungsoo couldn’t remember ever seeing the corgi mad. “Not all dogs are like that. We could say the same about cats! That you all are self-centered, angry and mean,” Baekhyun huffed, leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed over his chest.

                Kyungsoo was saved the trouble of coming up with a response by the waitress coming over and taking their orders. She scribbled them down as they went and promised to bring drinks over soon and that their meals would be done as quickly as possible – also apologizing for the restaurant being so busy, so the food might take longer than normal. They all hummed in response to her and turned back to each other when she was out of sight.

                “Sorry,” Kyungsoo sighed. “I didn’t mean to be stereotypical.”

                “You just need to give dogs a chance,” Jondae said, pointing a finger at him.

                “It’s easier for you to say,” Kyungsoo whined at his roommate. “You act more like a dog than a cat!”

                “It’s cause I’m a Maine Coon,” Jongdae said proudly. “We’re just as loyal and playful as most dog breeds,” he recited – a line Kyungsoo had heard a hundred times since meeting Jongdae. Kyungsoo didn’t have the luxury his friend did – he was just a basic tabby – he didn’t get an outgoing personality or gorgeous coat, he was just a plain, basic cat. So, of course, he acted like a plain, basic cat.

                “Maybe you’re right,” Kyungsoo said suddenly after a few moments of silence. “Maybe I should come hang out with you guys more,” he decided. He didn’t want to be known as the mean, pessimistic cat that Baekhyun had described.

                “Really?” Chanyeol asked in surprise, turning his entire body toward Kyungsoo with his ears perked up.

                “Sure,” Kyungsoo sighed. “I’ll just leave if I don’t like it.”

                “We’re having a mixer tonight,” Baekhyun cheered. “The girls from the modeling club are coming over to pregame and then the girl’s dance team are coming over for the actual party,” Baekhyun listed off. Kyungsoo scowled – the corgi wasn’t making a good case.

                “The guy’s rugby team is also coming,” Chanyeol pointed out, as though he could read Kyungsoo’s mind. “There’s a bunch of gay and bisexual guys at the frat, so they make sure to invite boy’s teams too.” The Great Dane locked eyes with Kyungsoo again, grinning, “incase you’re into that rather than girls in skimpy dresses trying to grind on you.” Kyungsoo must have made a face because all three of them burst into laughter.

                “This is going to be a lot of fun,” Jongdae cheered.


	2. Chapter 2

                Why had Kyungsoo agreed to this, again?

                Had they spiked his drink at the restaurant or something? Because the cat hybrid couldn’t even vaguely remember what had made him say he would go to the dog’s frat with them tonight.

                He stood awkwardly with a beer in his hand that he hadn’t even opened because even just the smell gave him a headache, and the entire frat house was packed with people. Kyungsoo could barely move from his position against the wall near kitchen, and he had lost sight of Jongdae and his boyfriend ages ago. He again wracked his brain for why the hell he had even ended up here in the first place.

                “You don’t look like you’re having much fun.”

                Kyungsoo glanced up at the tall figure who had sidled up next to him. The blonde greyhound was unnaturally skinny in the cat’s opinion, and he barely looked filled into his limbs; his face was in a scowl as he looked down at Kyungsoo. He couldn’t tell if the dog was mad at him for not having fun or if his face was just cemented like that.

                “I lost my friends a bit ago,” Kyungsoo muttered, tapping his nail against the top of the closed can lid. The dog glanced down at the unopened beer and chuckled to himself.

                “Who do you know here?” The dog asked. “It’s not often we get cats at the frat house.”

                “My roommate is dating Baekhyun,” the cat explained.

                The dog barked out a laugh, “the little cat who dances like a hooker?” Kyungsoo shrugged noncommittedly because he had no idea what Jongdae danced like. “Those two are pretty cute when they’re not trying to fuck each other in public areas.” Again, Kyungsoo just nodded along. “What’s your name?” The dog asked, obviously trying to force the smaller to actually speak.

                “Kyungsoo,” he answered simply.

                “Kyungsoo?” The dog said in wonder, as though he had heard the name before. “I’m Sehun,” he put out a hand that Kyungsoo shook weakly. “Nice to meet you.” Kyungsoo nodded again, looking back at the crowd incase he could see anyone else he knew. “Are you sure you don’t know anyone else here?” Sehun prompted.

                “Well,” Kyungsoo hummed. “I guess I kind of know another guy – Chanyeol.”

                “Oh!” Sehun pushed himself off the wall he had been leaning against. “I know where he is, if you want me to show you.” Kyungsoo thought for a moment. He could either continue sitting against a wall for the next few hours until Jongdae and Baekhyun made themselves apparent, or he could find the Great Dane and demand he bring him home.

                “Fine,” Kyungsoo sighed, peeling his back off of the wall. The greyhound grinned – his face looked much prettier like that – and patted Kyungsoo’s shoulder before walking off in the direction of the stairs. The cat followed wearily. He didn’t actually know this guy – what if he was leading him somewhere to kill him? Or mug him or something? Kyungsoo had tons of friends who had gotten robbed at frat houses before – or like, not tons, but a few. So, he stayed a couple paces back from the greyhound as he led him up the stairs and down to a door that was only slightly propped up. Sehun banged on the door loudly with his fist.

                “If you guys are fucking stop because I need Chanyeol!” Sehun yelled into the crack. A moment later Chanyeol appeared in the doorway scowling but fully dressed and not smelling like sex. Sehun grinned at him and patted his chest before pointing at Kyungsoo. “This little kitty has been looking for you.” Chanyeol looked over at Kyungsoo and blinked, as though remembering that the cat had accompanied them to the house.

                “Kyungsoo,” Chanyeol said quickly. “I totally forgot you had come! How long have you been alone?”

                “Like two or three hours,” Kyungsoo shrugged, looking away awkwardly.

                “I’m so sorry!” Chanyeol said quickly. He jabbed his thumb over his shoulder, “Some of the rugby guys wanted to play video games and I’m the one with the Xbox so I had to stay up here to make sure they didn’t break anything or throw up on Sehun’s bed or something.” The greyhound made a noise of disgust and peeked his head past the Great Dane probably to wear his bed was inside. Kyungsoo’s ears perked slightly at the fact that there was an Xbox and people were playing games, but the cat decided against asking to join since he probably wasn’t going to have much fun playing against a bunch of drunk rugby boys.

                “It’s fine, but can you walk me home?” Kyungsoo asked, trying to put on his best intimidating face. Chanyeol didn’t even look at him as he grabbed his jacket and nodded.

                “Sure,” he answered. “Sehun, stay up here till I get back.” The greyhound sighed dramatically before walking further into the room.

                “Fine, but tell Tao to come up so I’m not totally bored out of my mind,” Sehun muttered. Chanyeol gave him a thumbs up and led Kyungsoo to the front door of the house with a hand on the small of his back. The Great Dane spoke briefly with a blonde poodle who whined at having to go up and entertain Sehun, but went none the less, and then Chanyeol and Kyungsoo were walking out of the noisy frat house.

                Kyungsoo squinted his eyes, glancing around, and was immediately grateful he hadn’t tried to walk home alone cause he had no idea what part of campus they were even on. He also hadn’t brought his glasses, for fear of them being broken, and his astigmatism mixed with exhaustion was making his vision swim. He followed next to the Great Dane, who had obviously shortened his strides to match the much smaller cat’s, in silence.

                “I’m sorry again,” Chanyeol said after a few long minutes of silent walking. “I can’t believe Jongdae and Baekhyun didn’t stay with you at least! I thought they were your friends.”

                “They are,” Kyungsoo defended quickly. “But I’m not gonna hold them back from having fun. It was obvious they wanted to go spend time with the frat guys and I didn’t feel comfortable around so many giant dogs so I stayed behind. No one bothered me though, so it was fine,” he explained.

                “It still probably isn’t a great idea for you to have been left alone in there without anyone you knew,” Chanyeol hummed. “Baek and I’s frat is one of the better ones, but there are still some of those guys I don’t trust – they’re pretty sketchy,” the dog admitted.  “I woulda felt awful if one of them had been picking on you – some dogs really hate cats and can be really rude.” Kyungsoo looked up at Chanyeol, appreciating the dog’s profile for a moment while he grew fond at the dog being worried about him, but quickly looked ahead again to shake off the thoughts.

                “I was fine,” Kyungsoo reaffirmed. “I just wanted to leave to get some sleep – I still need to study before my first final tomorrow,” he explained. “And I don’t like walking around campus at night by myself.”

                Chanyeol nodded in understanding.

                They went back to the silence as they got closer to the residence hall Kyungsoo lived in. The cat pulled out his key card and let himself into the building, glancing back at the Great Dane who was looking down at his feet. “Thanks for walking me,” Kyungsoo said quietly.

                Chanyeol’s head whipped up, his tail starting to wag. “Anytime!” He said quickly. He pointed over his shoulder as he started to turn, “I should probably head back now though… I’ll see you in class tomorrow?” He asked hopefully. Kyungsoo thought for a moment – tomorrow would be Monday, which means yeah, they would have Bio together. The cat nodded and waved at the dog who had a grin break out over his face.

                “Yeah, I’ll see you in class,” Kyungsoo said before closing the door. He watched for only a moment as the dog walked away a bit peppier than before, his tail wagging and giant steps having a bit of a jump to them. Kyungsoo felt himself smiling fondly as he shook his head. Goddamn dog – being all attractive and adorable – he would be the death of Kyungsoo.

 

                “Hello Kyungsoo!”

                The cat glared up at the voice as the giant dog sat down next to him. It was way too early for Chanyeol’s voice to be at its normal volume and Kyungsoo glared as the Great Dane noisily got out his laptop and notebook and pencil. The dog’s tail was wagging and the cat couldn’t help wondering how much coffee he would have to drink to be this awake at 8am on a Monday after a night of partying way later than Kyungsoo had. He was personally dead, with only six hours of sleep after getting home, and he could barely function enough to just bring his laptop to his classes to take notes.

                “Did you get a good night’s sleep after you went to your room?” Chanyeol asked after not getting a response to his greeting. “What time do you wake up in the morning? You live much closer to this class than I do – I have to wake up so early to get the bus! It must be nice living on campus, that’s one of the things I hate the most about the frat. Did Jongdae and Baekhyun go to yours last night? I couldn’t find them this morning.” Kyungsoo’s head was spinning at the rambling of words spewing from the dog’s mouth as he continued getting ready to take notes on the day’s lecture. The cat paused for a moment before deciding which question to answer.

                “Yeah, Jongdae and Baekhyun were asleep in my room this morning,” he reported. “They seemed fine but I have no idea where Baekhyun’s shirt went cause he wasn’t wearing one and it wasn’t on the floor – it was a bit cold for him to have walked over without it though.” Chanyeol barked a laugh which had Kyungsoo’s ears ringing in protest, but he quieted down with a grin on his face as the professor began his lecture.

                “Do you wanna go get breakfast at the dining hall?” Chanyeol asked as they were packing up once the class ended. “Or did you already eat?” Kyungsoo shook his head as he pulled his backpack onto his shoulders.

                “No I haven’t eaten,” he mumbled and glanced at the door that he usually would have sped over to. “So I guess we can go together,” he hummed nonchalantly, as though it weren’t a big deal to go and eat with the dog. Chanyeol cheered and stood up, swinging his bag onto his back and following the cat out.

                “What do cats eat for breakfast?” He wondered aloud as they walked. “Do you guys have a special diet? I’ve never really seen Jongdae eat anything but sushi, coffee and alcohol.” Kyungsoo chuckled.

                “Nah, we can eat mostly anything,” Kyungsoo answered. “Except dairy – most of us are allergic to dairy.”

                “What?” Chanyeol gasped. “But, isn’t it like, a thing that you guys like milk?” He asked.

                “Sure,” Kyungsoo nodded. “I’d say the majority of us like it, but it’ll give us really bad stomach pains and I’ve thrown up a few times from it,” he explained.

                “That sucks,” Chanyeol decided. “I love milk – it’s delicious.” Kyungsoo roll his eyes and shook his head slightly with a smile. “But other than that you can eat everything?”

                “Yeah,” the cat nodded as he pulled open the door to the dining hall that was slowly filling with tired college students. “We aren’t like rodent hybrids who can’t eat meat – or lizard hybrids who eat bugs. We have a pretty normal diet.” Kyungsoo headed over to his normal table along the far wall. It was a small table that could only fit two or three seats, which is why he always took it – no one would even come and bother him or try to sit down. He slung his jacket and backpack over the back of one of the chairs and watched as Chanyeol did the same to the other chair. He hummed slightly to himself and made his way over to the line where they were serving eggs and sausage.

                He had already sat down and torn into his scrambled eggs by the time Chanyeol sat down balancing four plates of food on his arms. Kyungsoo continued munching as he watched the Great Dane try to organize his mountain of a breakfast over the table. The dog had gotten everything available – oatmeal, congee, an omelet, scrambled eggs, sausage, pancakes, a bowl of fresh fruit and a bowl of cereal. The cat stared in wonder as he watched Chanyeol absolutely devour his first plate in the time it took the cat to scoop another fork into his mouth.

                “Damn, you eat a lot,” Kyungsoo mumbled, only realizing he said it out loud when the dog looked up and started laughing.

                “I’m a lot bigger than you,” Chanyeol pointed out. “So I need more food.”

                “I really doubt you need _that_ much,” Kyungsoo mumbled as he started in on his sausage.

                “I get really hungry,” the dog whined.

                “How do you stay so skinny?” Kyungsoo wondered as the dog started in on his second plate.

                “The guys and I all go out and play a lot,” Chanyeol said happily, his tail wagging. “We get together and play basketball, or Frisbee, or lacrosse, or,” he tapped his chin. “Soccer is probably my favorite – but we just go out and exercise a lot.” Kyungsoo nodded in understanding.

                They ate for a while in silence – or, well, Kyungsoo finished eating and just watched Chanyeol shovel down his food for a while. The cat glanced down at his watch and decided it was probably time to head to his next class and get a good seat, so stood with his dirty dishes. “Where ya goin?” Chanyeol asked, mouth filled with Lucky Charms.

                “I have Kinesiology in twenty minutes,” The cat explained.

                “Oh!” The dog tilted his bowl back into his mouth, finishing it off, before standing and piling his plates into a stack that was definitely going to fall and smash everywhere. “I’ll walk you!” Kyungsoo didn’t question him as they made their way to the dish return and then out into the chilly weather.

                “Do you have class near the Kin building?” Kyungsoo wondered as they walked.

                “Nah, I don’t have another class until 2,” the dog explained, his hands in his pockets to keep out the cold.

                “You don’t have to walk me then,” Kyungsoo protested, turning to the Great Dane who just grinned at him.

                “I don’t mind,” He chirped happily. “So, what major are you?” He asked suddenly.

                “Biology premed,” Kyungsoo said immediately. “With a literature minor.”

                “Wow! So you must be really smart?” Chanyeol asked in awe. Kyungsoo just shrugged. “I’m an Engineer major! It’s pretty difficult, honestly my GPA isn’t the best, but I really like it. I’m still gonna graduate on time too – which is pretty rare for engineers.”

                The dog was an engineer major? How strange. “Any minor?” Kyungsoo asked politely.

                “Chinese minor,” Chanyeol shrugged. “Half my friends speak Chinese so I started taking classes to learn to speak with them, and eventually I had so many credits in it, it would have been a waste to not go for a minor.”

                “So, you’re a senior, right?” Kyungsoo asked. Chanyeol nodded excitedly.

                “Yup! I’ll be graduating in the spring,” He said happily. “You’re a junior, right?”

                “Sophomore,” Kyungsoo corrected. “Jongdae is a junior.”

                “But I thought you two were friends in high school,” Chanyeol tilted his head, his ears falling to one side, making Kyungsoo hold back a laugh.

                “We were, but I took a gap year,” Kyungsoo explained. “My sister was really sick when I graduated high school… and my parents are really hard at work so I stayed home to take care of her.” Chanyeol nodded slowly.

                “You’re such a good big brother,” he commented. “How’s she doing now?”

                “Oh,” Kyungsoo cleared his throat quickly. “She passed away,” he said calmly. “The cancer had spread past the point where the doctors could do anything.” They walked in silence for a few moments – Kyungsoo always hated explaining what had happened to his sister, it always made the other people feel bad for asking and it made him feel like he could burst into tears.

                “I’m so sorry,” Chanyeol murmured after another few moments.

                “It’s okay,” Kyungsoo said simply. “It’s what inspired me to go into premed. I was originally going to be a Literature major… but then I decided I wanted to help people like the doctors who were trying to help my sister.” The dog nodded slowly and soon the two were standing outside Kyungsoo’s Kin building. The cat mustered a smile at the dog. “Thanks for walking me again.”

                “No problem,” Chanyeol smiled shyly. “I was actually wanting to ask you something.” Kyungsoo tilted his head in a silent gesture to the dog to continue. “Uhm,” Chanyeol scratched his neck awkwardly. “I was… I was wondering if you… if you would like to get dinner? Tonight? If you have plans that’s totally fine too! I know you’re really stressed about finals so like, this might not be the best time… but I just really wanted to ask because you’re really cute and I wanted to spend more time with you,” the dog rambled, hands twisting together and feet shuffling anxiously. Kyungsoo could have pinched his cheek he was being so cute.

                “Dinner?” He said instead, looking up at the sky as though pondering. “Where?”

                “We could get dinner in town!” Chanyeol suggested. “I have work tonight, so I could meet you somewhere. We could get sushi again… or I know I really great Italian place that just opened last week.” Kyungsoo nodded, finally feeling his face beginning to get warm as he looked at his feet.

                “That sounds nice,” he mumbled. “Where do you work?” he asked, glancing up at the dog. “So I can just come to you and we can walk over together – since I don’t really know where the new restaurant is.”

                “Oh! Ah,” Chanyeol laughed awkwardly. “I actually work at the Starbucks in town.” Kyungsoo raise his eyebrows in surprise – this clumsy dog was in charge of making hot beverages? He could only guess how many burns the poor guy had gotten. “I get off at 7:00 – would that work?”

                The cat nodded and smiled small at the dog, “That sounds great – I’ll see you then.”

                “Great!” Chanyeol grinned, his tail starting to wag again. “I’ll see you at 7:00!” He called over his shoulder as he walked away with a skip in his step. Kyungsoo finally let himself laugh as he walked in to his class.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SEE? I can write cute and fluffy! It's making me want to gag but hey, it's good practice to not make every story I write dark and horrible :D


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> December 26 2016 PSA:  
> My laptop with this document on it is currently MIA :( I should be getting it back soon but that's whats causing the delay in chapter 4!! So sorry to everyone! :( I did put up a new fic though if anyone wants to read that to be satisfied until this gets updated? maybe?

“You’re going on a date with Chanyeol?” Baekhyun and Jongdae screeched in unison as Kyungsoo pulled on a slightly nicer sweater than he had been wearing before – the one Jongdae insisted made him look ‘hot.’ “Why did you tell us you two had a thing?” Jongdae yelled. “I thought you just met him!”

                “I did,” Kyungsoo said bluntly. “He asked me to go to dinner – it’s nothing serious. I’m sure he asks every cute guy he meets to go out.”

                “Nuh huh,” Baekhyun grinned, his tail wagging as he laid on his stomach, looking like a teenage girl wanting the latest gossip. “He hasn’t dated anyone in college.”

                “What?” Kyungsoo stared at the corgi. “He’s a senior!”

                “Yeah I know, and I’ve tried setting him up dozens of times – he never wants to,” Baekhyun rolled onto his back so his ear to ear smile was upside down. “He must really like you.”

                “Can we tell him?” Jongdae stage whispered, giggling when his boyfriend smacked his knee.

                “Tell me what?” Kyungsoo questioned suspiciously as he wound a scarf around his neck. Snow was falling outside and he knew he was going to be freezing walking all the way to the center of town in the cold.

                “Chanyeol might have noticed you a bit earlier than you were aware,” Baekhyun grumbled, glaring at his boyfriend who cooed and tried snuggling with him in apology. “He didn’t want us to tell you though!”

                “But they’re going on a date now!” Jongdae whined. “I figured we could tell him!”

                “Well just fucking tell me now,” Kyungsoo said, irritated.

                “He’s been wanting to ask you out since the beginning of last semester,” Baekhyun sighed. “It makes him sound really creepy though, which is why he didn’t want us saying anything!”

                “Wait what?” Kyungsoo raised an eyebrow. “I hadn’t met him before the weekend though.”

                “He was in your literature class in the spring,” Baekhyun rolled his eyes. “I had to hear about you every fucking Monday, Wednesday and Friday; ‘oh Baek he’s just so cute!’ ‘Oh Baek his mouth makes a heart when he smiles!’ ‘Oh Baek he doesn’t even know I exist how should I talk to him? I don’t even know his name!’ It was later on when he told me you were Jongdae’s friend that I told him I could try setting you guys up since you’re obviously gay-”

                “Hey! It’s not that obvious!” Kyungsoo defended.

                “Whatever,” Baekhyun laughed. “But he insisted on doing it himself. It got to be the next semester, and then halfway through, and eventually finals were right around the corner and he was still pining and whining to me every time you guys had Biology class. So I told him if he didn’t make a move to talk to you before we left for winter break I wouldn’t talk to him for a month.”

                “Well that’s harsh,” Kyungsoo rolled his eyes.

                “But it made him do it!” Baekhyun protested.

                “Yeah, thanks for that,” Kyungsoo muttered. “He didn’t even want to ask me out – you made him.”

                “Nuh huh!” Baekhyun yelled. “I told him he had to try talking to you! It still took him like three weeks to do it.” Kyungsoo put his hands up.

                “Fine, fine,” he huffed. “But why would he be interested in me anyways? Especially if he hadn’t dated anyone in college?” Kyungsoo questioned.

                “I dunno,” Baekhyun shrugged.

                “Maybe he’s just got a specific taste,” Jongdae suggested.

                “Well it’s probably really fucking specific – I tried setting him up with every type of person,” Baekhyun huffed.

                “Kyungsoo is just special,” Jongdae cooed.

                Kyungsoo shot him the bird before grabbing his wallet and gloves. “I better be going – I’m supposed to meet him at his job at 7,” He waved at the two and got excited exclamations of luck in return as he closed the door. He shuffled down the stairs and out of his building, hiding his face in his scarf as he quickly walked in the direction of the town.

                The coffee shop as warm when Kyungsoo stepped in. His cheeks and hands burned from the sudden change in temperature and his nose sniffled. He immediately saw Chanyeol behind the counter, dressed in the same all black outfit he had on when he came to dinner with them, but paired with a bright red apron with the familiar Starbucks logo adorning it. His stunning grin was shot at each customer as he handed them their hot drinks, and surprisingly it looked like he didn’t spill a single one as he worked quickly. Kyungsoo stepped up into the short line, figuring he might as well grab a cocoa if Chanyeol was going to be a few minutes while working.

                When he got to the front it took a moment for the Great Dane to notice who it was, but he quickly yelled, “Kyungsoo!” And his tail started beating behind him which made the cat hybrid very nervous. “I’m so sorry, I’m not done yet!”

                “Don’t worry,” Kyungsoo waved him off. “I’m a bit early. Can I get a hot cocoa to drink while I wait?”

                The dog nodded quickly and ran to get his order, making Kyungsoo giggle behind his hand, disguising it as a cough. The hybrid came back and handed him the drink, waving him off when he tried to pay. “On the house,” Chanyeol grinned. “I’ll only be another ten minutes or so.” Kyungsoo blushed and nodded, taking his hot chocolate over to an empty table to sit and sip at it.

                It was definitely longer than ten minutes that Kyungsoo was forced to wait, but he didn’t mind as he watched the Great Dane at work. It looked like the perfect job for him – high energy, interacting with people, and getting to smile the entire time. The dog didn’t even mess up once while the cat watched him, impressed. He had been sure Chanyeol would be clumsy at this type of job.

                “All done!” Chanyeol announced as he walked over, pulling off his apron and throwing himself into the seat across from Kyungsoo. He sighed dramatically and wiped at imaginary sweat on his forehead. “This job gets pretty crazy this type of year – people wanting their red cups and all.” Kyungsoo laughed.  “Ready to go?” the cat nodded and stood, following the dog out of the shop.

                They chatted easily about school and homework and Baekhyun and Jongdae as they walked to the restaurant and got a table. “Baek and I were roommates before I moved into the frat,” Chanyeol explained. “Baek insisted on staying in the dorms which was a bit annoying since we’ve been friends for so long, but Sehun is great too! He’s a bit dramatic and stubborn – like he won’t admit he and Tao are together! But he’s a cute kid, and gets drunk after like one shot – I bet its cause he’s so skinny. He’s tall sure. But he can’t weigh more than a hundred twenty pounds. He really likes cuddling though when he’s hammered which is pretty cute except that time he threw up on my bed – I was _so_ mad at him for that but I forgave him pretty easily – he’s a pouter. He’s got such good puppy eyes going on, he’s really adorable,” Chanyeol rambled. Kyungsoo just smiled and nodded along, watching him talk animatedly and finding he liked listening to the dog speak.

                “How did you meet Jongdae?” Chanyeol suddenly asked as they were getting their food.

                “We were in the same class in high school,” Kyungsoo shrugged. “We were some of the only cats in it and I dunno, he kinda just latched onto me, and I didn’t mind him too much.” Chanyeol barked out a laugh.

                “He seems really great,” Chanyeol commented. “He makes Baekhyun really happy.”

                Kyungsoo rolled his eyes and smiled fondly, “Yeah, I can tell. They’re still all over each other – you’d think they’d be out of the ‘honeymoon phase’ by now.”

                “I’d be shocked if they don’t settle down together after college,” Chanyeol grinned. “Can you imagine little Baekhyun and Jongdae’s running around? That’d be so cute!” Kyungsoo cringed, making a face of horror.

                “Hell no, they are _not_ allowed to procreate,” Kyungsoo protested.

                “Why not? Their kids would be cute!” Chanyeol laughed, his tail wagging in delight.

                “If you like little terrors, sure,” Kyungsoo mumbled around a bite of pasta.

                “I love kids!” Chanyeol said suddenly. “They’re so cute,” he nodded to himself.

                “I don’t,” Kyungsoo said blandly. “Jongdae loves them – I don’t get it at all.”

                “Well,” Chanyeol hummed, suddenly looking awkward. Kyungsoo watched as his cheeks turned pink and he stared down at his plate as he moved his food around. “I mean… are you one of the kitties who can like, you know, have kids?” He asked in a rush. Kyungsoo almost choked on his food.

                “Uh,” he sputtered, grabbing his napkin to rub at his mouth awkwardly. “I mean,” he coughed, his cheeks heating up just as bright as the dog’s. “Yeah, I am, but like, I’ve never really had those maternal instincts and shit,” he mumbled. “That’s all Jongdae.”

                “Oh,” Chanyeol nodded. “Maybe you’ll like kids later, then.” Kyungsoo hummed and tried to fill the awkward silence with shoveling food into his mouth. “Sorry for asking about it,” Chanyeol mumbled. “I didn’t mean to make it awkward.”

                “That’s okay, I get asked it a lot,” Kyungsoo shrugged.

                “Really? Isn’t that more of a personal question?” Chanyeol’s ears perked up.

                “Yeah but like,” the cat shrugged again. “I’m small and feminine or something I guess so people just assume I’m a guy who can have kids, so they figure they can ask and just confirm it.”

                “You’re not that feminine,” Chanyeol defended.

                “I know, but I guess I _look_ feminine.” Chanyeol pursed his lips but nodded and chewed on his chicken parmesan. “I _guess_ it’ll be okay when Baekhyun and Jongdae have kids though,” Kyungsoo commented, trying to turn the subject back to a happy matter. “Do you really think they’ll actually stay together?”

                “For sure,” Chanyeol nodded confidently. “Baekhyun never shuts up about Jongdae and how amazing he is. It’s always ‘Jongdae this’ and ‘Jongdae that’ and he seems to worship Jongdae’s ass – like he would probably write poetry about it if he knew how to write above a third grade level.” Kyungsoo laughed, putting a hand over his mouth. “Seriously though! I have to hear about Jongdae all the time!”

                “Well,” Kyungsoo grinned. “Baekhyun told me the same thing about you.”

                “What?” Chanyeol asked in surprise.

                “He told me you would talk about me constantly – about how you’d been pining after me for a while now,” Kyungsoo hummed, a smile on his lips.

                “That little fucker,” Chanyeol groaned, slumping in his seat. Kyungsoo held back a coo at how red the dog hybrid was getting.

                “So you’ve liked me for a while?” Kyungsoo asked and tilted his head to the side. He could feel his ears perk up slightly, turning toward the Great Dane.

                Chanyeol nodded. “We were in that Romantic literature class together last semester… and one day the teacher asked people to present their poems – and obviously no one wanted to cause there were like 60 people in that class and who would want to do that? But the professor picked you out of the entire crowd and told you to read your poem.” Kyungsoo cringed at the story – he remembered that exact day perfectly. It had been only the second week of the class, their first assignment, and Kyungsoo had been terrified to sit at the front of any class since. “When you stood up I just – you were so cute! It was obvious you were so scared to be reading your poem, and I just wanted to go up and give you a hug. But then – your poem was so good! It was like a song. I write a lot of music, and I could just imagine your words as lyrics. So that’s when I first noticed you.”

Chanyeol refused to look at him, glancing away before he continued, “But I started liking you one day when Jongdae came running into the class. He came and gave you a brown paper lunch and kissed you on the forehead – which, I was super jealous of, let me tell you – but you smiled and laughed at him and it was just really pretty. It was later I recognized it was Jongdae who was dating Baekhyun, and that’s when I told Baek.” Kyungsoo also remembered that story – it was the day Jongdae had thrown out the leftovers he’d been planning on eating for lunch, so he’d left the dorm without anything to eat. The other cat had felt bad and brought him Starbucks to make up for it.

“That’s pretty cute, not gonna lie,” Kyungsoo laughed. Chanyeol finally looked at him, his grin spreading from ear to ear.

“Really?” He asked, tail wagging again. “I’m cute?”

“No, I said your story was cute,” Kyungsoo chuckled.

“I think that means I’m cute be default since it was _my_ story,” the dog laughed.

“I guess,” Kyungsoo shrugged.

“Your turn,” Chanyeol said, nodding at him. Kyungsoo raised an eyebrow in question. “I just poured my heart out to you, so you can tell me what you thought of me at first.”

Oh, shit. “Hm,” Kyungsoo mumbled, thinking. “I honestly didn’t really notice you until that day in the library.”

“Ouch,” Chanyeol grabbed at his chest. “Only then? Dude we’ve been in class together for a year! And I’m your roommate’s boyfriend’s best friend!”

“Yeah, yeah,” Kyungsoo waved him off with a roll of his eyes. “You sat down across from me and my immediate thought was that it fucking sucked that such a hot guy wanted to talk to me during finals week.”

“You thought I was hot?” Chanyeol sat up straighter, his grin getting wider to the point that the cat thought his face might snap in two.

“Yeah,” Kyungsoo sighed. “And I was all grubby and gross from not leaving the library in a few days, and I couldn’t believe you’d wanted to talk to me. But then I noticed you were a dog hybrid so kinda got turned away if I’m honest.”

“Really?” Chanyeol asked in surprise.

The cat nodded, “Yeah. Cats have always been taught to stay away from dogs. So, I figured I didn’t want to get mixed up with one.”

“Huh,” Chanyeol looked up at the ceiling. “I wonder why there’s this whole cats vs dogs thing.”

“Well it’s cause any time you hear of a murder or a fight or something – nine times out of ten it’s a cat and a dog. A lot of domestic violence happens between interbreed couples too,” Kyungsoo pointed out.

“I guess,” Chanyeol shrugged. “It sucks though.”

Kyungsoo nodded. “It does, but,” he paused. “I guess I’m getting over the stereotypes though. You’re nothing like the evil, disgusting monsters who rape and kill everything in your path.”

“Damn, I didn’t know that was the stereotype,” Chanyeol said. “But, I guess you’re not the super mean, conceited, overly dramatic thing that people always describe cats as. You’re much cuter.” Kyungsoo laughed, leaning across to shove at the dog’s shoulder.

“Shut up,” Kyungsoo giggled.

“But it’s true,” Chanyeol grinned. The cat looked down at his empty plate as Chanyeol called the waitress over for the bill. “Would you like me to walk you home?” the dog asked as they stood and pulled on their coats.

“That’d be nice,” Kyungsoo nodded and followed the taller out of the restaurant.

“Do you have any finals tomorrow?” Chanyeol asked as they walked.

Kyungsoo groaned, “Yeah, I have one at 8am – who the fuck thought that was a good idea?” He asked and glanced at his watch – it wasn’t too late, which meant he’d be able to get a decent amount of sleep if Baekhyun wasn’t over. “What about you?”

“All of mine are on Tuesday,” Chanyeol groaned. “I’m just hopping from one to the other from ten in the morning till six at night.” Kyungsoo cringed in empathy.

“That really sucks – but hey, that means you get to go home earlier, right?” The cat hybrid pointed out.

“Nah,” Chanyeol shrugged. “I stay here for the winter break, I just stay in the house.”

“Really?” Kyungsoo raised his eyebrows in surprise. “Does anyone else stay?”

“Yeah, Sehun and Tao and a few of the other guys – plus Baekhyun comes to visit more often than not, so it’s not too lonely or anything,” Chanyeol nodded to himself as he spoke. Kyungsoo didn’t want to prod anymore at the dog’s home life and why he would rather stay on campus than go back for Christmas and time alone. “Are you going home?”

“Yeah,” Kyungsoo nodded. “But I don’t like very far from campus – honestly I could have commuted if I had wanted to,” he shrugged.

“Oh yeah! I forgot you and Jongdae are from the same town – aren’t you guys only like half an hour from here?” Kyungsoo nodded in confirmation. “Well, you’ll have to come visit,” Chanyeol grinned, bumping his shoulder against the cat’s. Kyungsoo felt himself blushing but nodded anyways.

“Okay,” he agreed. He felt his heart sink slightly as they stepped up to his residence hall. “This was fun,” He smiled. “We should go out again sometime.”

“Really?” Chanyeol’s tail wagged quickly behind him, his hands tangling in themselves nervously. “Uhm, Kyungsoo?” The cat looked up at him in question. “Can I… Can I hug you? Or like, kiss you? Or something?” He fumbled over his words. Kyungsoo laughed at how endearing he could be – Chanyeol going from an insanely gorgeous and hot frat boy to an adorable, endearing little puppy was giving him whiplash.

“Sure,” Kyungsoo nodded.

“Which one?” The dog asked in panic, his eyes growing wide.

“Either one you want,” Kyungsoo smirked, tilting his head up to the dog.

Chanyeol hesitated for more time than the cat had thought he would, his hands still kneading together. After a several seconds the dog leaned forward, wrapping his lanky arms around Kyungsoo. He giggled slightly before hugging the Great Dane back, and he felt a press of lips on his cheek before the dog was quickly pulling back and bowing to him. “Good night, Kyungsoo!” he called as he turned and walked away.

“Good night, Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo laughed and waved.

He denied the ear to ear grin plastered to his face when he walked in the door to Jongdae and Baekhyun watching Mean Girls for the hundredth time. He ignored the couple as they prodded at his red cheeks and tried to tickle the information out of him. All he said was ‘it was a really nice date’ to get them to shut up as he got ready for bed. He was still smiling to himself as he laid down and closed his eyes to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is disgustingly cute and fluffy, but that's what I'm working on writing with this fic.
> 
> There WILL be smut in later chapters. 
> 
> Still not totally sure how long this fic will even be but lets roll with it


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am SO sorry this took SO long to update! I got a new laptop for xmas cause my old one crashed and it took a bit to transfer all my files!
> 
> Also sorry if this seems slightly rushed, and if its a bit shorter than normal - i just really wanted to get this story going!
> 
> Hope you all enjoy!! :)

Kyungsoo woke the next morning to their neighbors rousing him for his final.

Jongdae’s head was buried under his pillow and he groaned loudly when he heard the two other cats come into their dorm. This was always protocol for early classes – Yixing and Junmyeon were always up at an ungodly hour and didn’t mind waking others up to get to their classes on time. It was also helpful Yixing and him were going to the same Kinesiology test.

“Good morning, Kyungsoo,” the black cat purred as he rubbed at Kyungsoo’s ears. The tabby groaned and tried to curl away from the lazy smile and soft purrs, but hands quickly turned him onto his back.

“You can’t be so nice at waking this one up,” Junmyeon sighed at Yixing. The ocicat leaned down and pulled Kyungsoo into a sitting position. “Come’un Kyungsoo, your final is in half an hour.”

“I’m up, I’m up, mom,” Kyungsoo hissed. He immediately fell back into his bed once the elder released his arms.

“Awe, come on, Soo,” Yixing cooed, lying next to him to cuddle. “We can’t afford to fail our final.” Kyungsoo nuzzled back at the cuddly cat. He always liked how chill his neighbor was – all he wanted was to do well at school, come home, smoke some pot, and cuddle everything in sight. Honestly, even when the black cat wasn’t high he was always begging to snuggle with someone.

“I know, I know,” Kyungsoo groaned, arching his back to stretch before finally pulling himself up. He moved quickly to pull on something warm and that probably matched before following the other two out of the hall and into the chilly December air. Kyungsoo hid quickly in his scarf and pulled his hat down tighter on his head as he and Yixing walked to their lecture hall.

They chatted easily about the test, what they were nervous about, how they studied, etc. etc. and they were sitting down to take the test before Kyungsoo could think any harder about it. Again, who thought an 8am exam was a good idea? He wiped at his eyes furiously and tried to keep the words from muddling on the page as he yawned.

He figured he probably passed as he turned in the paper, but that could also be the exhaustion talking.

“Hey, Kyungsoo!”

Kyungsoo turned before being barreled into and forced into a tight embrace. “How was your final, man?” The Persian cat cooed. “I haven’t seen you in a week!”

Kyungsoo laughed and shoved his friend off himself. “Nice to see you too, Jongin,” he sighed and continued walking, knowing the younger would tag after him, “I think the final was fine. I’ve been in the library or my bed for the past couple days though – which is why I haven’t come to club recently.”

“That’s understandable,” Jongin nodded, kicking at the snow with his boot as he walked. “Yixing and I came up with a killer dance routine though – we want to show you it next time you come!” Kyungsoo vaguely remembered the other cat mentioning it on their walk over, so nodded.

“Yeah, of course,” Kyungsoo assured. “Do you know what song the chorus is doing?” He asked.

“Their doing all the Christmas stuff right now,” Jongin rolled his eyes. “Like ‘Carol of the Bells’ and Mariah Carey and shit.”

“That sounds fun,” Kyungsoo laughed.

“I hate Christmas songs, dude,” Jongin groaned. “And trying to come up with a hiphop routine while they’re singing in the next room is pretty difficult.”

“Well, it’s supposed to be a club for _all_ forms of performance,” Kyungsoo pointed out.

“Oh I know, I know, it’s still annoying though,” Jongin shrugged. “It’s fine when you’re there though – no one can beat your voice,” the Persian cooed, bumping his shoulder against the smaller’s. Kyungsoo laughed, waving him off.

“I’m not that good,” Kyungsoo said, but a smile still tugged at his lips at the compliment.

“Of course you are!” Jongin cried, throwing an arm around Kyungsoo and tugging him close. “You need more confidence in yourself,” he said, waving a finger at Kyungsoo like an angry mother. The tabby rolled his eyes at his friend.

“I’m plenty confident – and I know there are people in the chorus who are better than me,” he said simply.

“Kyungsoo?”

The cat turned at the familiar voice, seeing Chanyeol making his way over to them carrying two Starbucks cups in his gloved hands. “Oh, hey Chanyeol!” Kyungsoo smiled at him. “What’re you doing?”

“I was coming to meet you after your final,” the Great Dane admitted shyly as he came to a stop in front of them. “I brought you a hot cocoa,” he said, handing over the drink which Kyungsoo perked up at, taking happily and holding the hot cup close to his face. “I didn’t know you were gonna be with someone, so I only brought two,” Chanyeol said apologetically, nodding at Jongin.

“Oh, that’s fine,” Kyungsoo said quickly. “This is just Jongin – we just happened upon each other when I was coming out of my final.” Jongin nodded along with him. “Oh! Jongin, this is Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo introduced quickly. “You know Jongdae’s boyfriend? Chanyeol is in the same frat as him.”

“Oh,” Jongin said in acknowledgement. “The dog frat right? Yeah I know a couple of the guys there,” He smile and shook Chanyeol’s hand.

“Yeah? Who?” Chanyeol asked excitedly.

“Oh Sehun, and Zitao – they’re in my grade,” Jongin explained.

“Oh, I’m Sehun’s roommate!” Chanyeol grinned, his tail wagging. “I didn’t know Sehun was friends with a kitty.”

“He’s in the performance club with me,” Jongin explained. “We’re all dancers – Kyungsoo here is in the chorus of the club,” Jongin grinned, tightening his grip on Kyungsoo’s shoulder. “You guys throw awesome parties though,” the Persia commented, turning back to the Great Dane.

“Ah, thanks,” Chanyeol said, looking embarrassed. “That’s usually Baekhyun’s doing,” he admitted.

“Well, I guess I’ll see you at the next one,” Jongin winked, laughing and releasing his arm from around Kyungsoo. “See you later, Soo,” he grinned and kissed Kyungsoo’s cheek, laughing as Kyungsoo smacked his ass and hissed at him. Kyungsoo rubbed at his cheek with a scowl as he watched the Persian trot away.

“That rotten kid, he always treats me like _I’m_ the younger one,” Kyungsoo sighed.

“Yeah,” Chanyeol said vaguely. “How do you know him?”

“Jongin? He’s from my high school,” Kyungsoo sighed. “He was two years younger than me there, but now he’s a Freshman and I’m a Sophomore – so he seems to think he’s all high and mighty now,” the cat huffed. Chanyeol smiled slightly.

“He seemed nice,” Chanyeol said simply, raising his cup to his mouth to take a sip of his drink. Kyungsoo mirrored him, groaning at how good the hot cocoa tasted. “Are you all done for today?” the dog asked suddenly.

“Yeah,” Kyungsoo nodded.

“Any plans?” The dog asked.

Kyungsoo chuckled, “Noooo. Did you want to hang out?”

Chanyeol nodded excitedly, “Yeah! Wanna come to the house? There won’t be many people there since everyone actually has to study and stuff.”

Kyungsoo shrugged, “Sure, why not?”

The Great Dane cheered before hooking his arm with the cat’s, making Kyungsoo laugh as he was dragged along by the dog who had much longer strides than him.

               The house was completely dead when they arrived, save for the few dogs passed out on the couches with books and papers flung over their torsos and the areas around them. Chanyeol snuck quietly passed the quiet living room and bounded up the stairs to his bedroom, Kyungsoo following behind with a grin on his face at how goofy the dog was being. When Kyungsoo was through the door Chanyeol quickly closed the door and leaped onto his bed, snuggling his face into the comforter. His tail was wagging and his grin was face splitting again when he looked up at Kyungsoo.

               Kyungsoo laughed, “What are you grinning at?”

               “I’m just happy we’re hanging out!” Chanyeol barked, his tail whipping back and forth faster. Kyungsoo sat gingerly on the side of Chanyeol’s bed, looking around at each side of the room. Sehun’s side was covered in photos and posters of some band Kyungsoo had never seen before, and his desk was piled with textbooks and notebooks strewn all over the place. While Chanyeol’s side had a few hats hanging on the otherwise sparse walls, and his desk was neatly organized by height of his textbooks with his laptop placed in the middle. They had a fish tank on the shelf next to Chanyeol’s desk, but Kyungsoo couldn’t be sure if there was anything actually alive in it.

               “I don’t really know if I trust you with fish,” Kyungsoo commented. Chanyeol lifted his head and looked over at the fish tank.

               “Oh, don’t worry, it’s not fish,” He laughed. “They’re newts.”

               “ _Newts_?” Kyungsoo asked in confusion.

               “Yeah – like, little salamanders. They live half in the water, half out – that’s why there are so many things for them to climb on in there,” Chanyeol said, moving off his bed to go and peer into the dirty tank. “They like the water to be like a pond – that’s why it looks so dirty. Don’t worry – I’m a good newt dad!” Chanyeol said proudly, banging on his chest to show his masculinity. Kyungsoo just laughed.

               “So, you’ve got me here,” Kyungsoo said with a yawn. “What do you wanna do now?” Kyungsoo had a couple of things in mind after how Chanyeol’s tight embrace and quick peck on his cheek had him feeling last night.

               Chanyeol pounced on his mattress again, making Kyungsoo bounce, and laid on his back. He stared at the ceiling as he absentmindedly rubbed over his stomach. “I dunno, I have an xbox we could play – or we could study like everyone else on campus,” he suggested.

               “Ugg,” Kyungsoo groaned, falling back and covering his face with his arms. “My brain is fried from that exam – I need at least a couple hours of not shoving information into my brain.”

               “Then, video games?” Chanyeol asked.

               “I’ve never really played video games,” Kyungsoo admitted. “Besides like, Pokemon and Zelda and stuff like that. I haven’t played Halo or Call of Duty like most guys have.”

               “That’s okay! I can show you!”

               And thus, two hours flew by with Kyungsoo only getting angry enough to throw his controller at the wall twice, Chanyeol laughing nonstop at how bad Kyungsoo was at video games, and the cat only threatening to kill the dog once. By the time Kyungsoo flung up his hands in defeat, the two were leaning against each other. Kyungsoo had a vague idea of how they’d gotten into this position – what with Chanyeol putting his arms around Kyungsoo to show him how to hold the controller, and then continually inching closer as they played. The cat hybrid stared back at the Great Dane as he shut down his controller and flicked off the TV. Chanyeol looked down at him, confusion in his eyes, before Kyungsoo reached up and kissed him square on the mouth.

               Chanyeol pulled away almost instantly, his face beet red. “Wha- what was that for?” He squeaked, his voice several octaves higher than usual.

               “You didn’t kiss me last night,” Kyungsoo explained, grinning. “So, I figured it was up to me.”

               Chanyeol considered this for a moment. “I didn’t know if you’d wanna kiss me or not,” he mumbled, looking down at his hands in his lap. Kyungsoo scooted closer until he was surrounded by Chanyeol’s long legs. Kyungsoo nudged his nose into the dog’s jaw before kissing him again in answer. He felt the Great Dane melt slightly beneath his lips and slowly begin to kiss him back.

               Chanyeol’s lips were soft, and his kisses weren’t nearly as slobbery as Kyungsoo was half expecting. He had been sure the dog would have gotten overly excited – like he did about everything else – and his kisses would be more like he was trying to eat Kyungsoo’s face. But his kisses were controlled and somewhat lazy, his lips moving against Kyungsoo’s unhurriedly. His tongue brushed out against the cat’s only a few times before Kyungsoo let him in to allowed him to explore the inside of his mouth. Kyungsoo shifted so he was able to face the Great Dane better and wrapped his arms around his neck. He felt Chanyeol’s hands slip onto his waist in the perfect position – not too high to be chaste and awkward, but not too low that Kyungsoo felt like he was being fondled. Kyungsoo smiled slightly into the kiss, “I guess a make out session is a fun activity to do at your frat house too.”

               Chanyeol barked out a laugh, his head tilted back, “I guess you’re right,” he mumbled before pulling Kyungsoo back in for another kiss. He felt Chanyeol’s hands pressing slightly on his lower back, urging him to get closer, so he pulled himself into the dog’s lap so he was straddling him. Chanyeol yelped slightly in surprise before Kyungsoo was shoving their lips back together, this time shoving his tongue into the dog’s mouth to be able to explore. He noticed the dog’s tail wagging slightly and the fact that Chanyeol seemed to be trying to do his ear to ear grin while also trying to kiss Kyungsoo, and the cat couldn’t help pulling away to laugh. Chanyeol looked at him with those huge puppy dog eyes, his tail not stopping in its wagging. “What is it?” Chanyeol asked incredulously.

               “You’re just such a _dog_ ,” Kyungsoo giggled, grabbing Chanyeol’s tail and making it stop wagging. Chanyeol looked down sheepishly.

               “Sorry, I don’t even realize I’m doing it,” he admitted.

               “It’s okay,” Kyungsoo purred before releasing the limb. “It’s actually pretty endearing.” The dog perked up at that before kissing Kyungsoo’s cheek.

               “Your kisses are really nice!” Chanyeol commented, grinning at Kyungsoo again. The cat rolled his eyes.

               “Thanks, I guess, though that’s a weird compliment,” he said before kissing the dog on his nose. “But, I suppose your kisses are nice too.”

               “Really?” Chanyeol asked excitedly, his tail starting to beat against the mattress again.

               “Yeah, definitely not as slobbery as I was thinking they would be,” Kyungsoo admitted.

               “Thanks!” Chanyeol chirped and kissed Kyungsoo’s lips again. Kyungsoo allowed his fingers to tangle in the Great Dane’s hair as they kissed, pulling himself closer to the broad chest and warmth the dog provided.

               “Damn, Chanyeol, I thought we agreed to text each other if we were getting laid in the room.”

               Kyungsoo glanced up at the greyhound hybrid who was standing at the door, groaning and covering his eyes as though he’d be scandalized. The poodle hybrid Kyungsoo recognized as Tao was standing behind him, looking curious as he peered into the room. The cat glanced down at his and Chanyeol’s position and decided they really weren’t _that_ bad – he was just sitting on Chanyeol’s lap.

               “We weren’t doing anything though,” Chanyeol said quickly, his hands moving to a slightly safer position on Kyungsoo’s waist, further from his tail than they had been before. “And you never text me when you and Tao are here!”

               Sehun growled at him, “Cause Tao and I aren’t doing anything either,” he protested.

               “Oh so when I sucked your dick the other day it was nothing?” The poodle huffed as he fell onto the greyhound’s bed. Kyungsoo held back an awkwardly laugh. The greyhound was already turning to the poodle, and the two dogs started yelling about whether or not they were a thing and whether them having sex actually means anything.

               “We should run. Now,” Chanyeol whispered and quickly stood, grabbing his coat and backpack and racing out of the room with Kyungsoo. “It’s never a good idea to be in the same room when they start arguing.”

               “Do they ‘fight like cats’?” Kyungsoo asked, appreciating the dog’s laugh at his stupid joke.

               “I don’t understand why they won’t just make things official,” Chanyeol hummed as he ducked out the front door of the frat. Kyungsoo had no idea where they were going but followed the Great Dane anyway. “They’ve been acting like a couple for a year and a half now – since they both joined the frat when they were freshmen.”

               “Well, had either of them asked the other to make it official?” Kyungsoo asked.

               Chanyeol thought for a moment, “Honestly, probably not. They’re both too stubborn to make the first move – I’m sure they both want the other to do it.” Kyungsoo nodded along and followed the dog silently. “I know it’s kinda early,” Chanyeol said suddenly. “But I really do like you, Kyungsoo. Would you ever want to make _us_ official?” Kyungsoo looked up at the dog who was staring at him with such anticipation it made his stomach do flips.

               He laughed slightly to lighten the atmosphere, “Maybe if we go on a few more dates and they go well – but don’t worry, I won’t let us wait over a year.” Chanyeol looked at ease at that compromise. “Where are we going?” Kyungsoo finally asked after another few minutes of walking.

               “I dunno,” Chanyeol admitted with a laugh. “I was just kinda wandering.”

               “Well, I probably should actually head back to the dorm to study,” Kyungsoo sighed and kicked at the snow beneath his boot. “You should probably study too.” Chanyeol sighed and nodded in agreement. They paused for a moment, suddenly wondering how they were supposed to part.

               “I’ll text you?” Chanyeol wondered aloud, tilting his head as he waiting for Kyungsoo’s answer.

               The cat smiled and leaned up, kissing Chanyeol on the cheek. “Definitely, we can plan another date soon.”

               The two hybrids parted, Kyungsoo rushing back up to his dorm and Chanyeol trudging back to his frat house. The cat walked into his dorm room that was infested with corgis, and glared at Baekhyun when the dog shouted at him in greeting.

               “Where have you been?” Jongdae asked where he was actually sitting at his desk with a textbook open. His boyfriend, on the other hand, had Kyungsoo’s 3DS in his hands and was definitely playing his Pokemon Moon game.

               “I went to the frat house with Chanyeol after my final,” he said casually, tossing his backpack and coat onto his bed before dropping into his spinny desk chair.

               “Oooh,” Jongdae cooed.

               “What did you to do?” Baekhyun asked, perking up and rolling onto his back to look at Kyungsoo upside down.

               “Not much,” Kyungsoo shrugged.

               “You know, whatever you don’t tell us, Chanyeol will,” Jongdae reminded him.

               “We really didn’t do much,” Kyungsoo insisted. “We played some video games and then made out a bit before his roommate walked in.”

               “You two made out?” Baekhyun’s voice was definitely ten notches too loud.

               “Yeah,” Kyungsoo rolled his eyes at the corgi. “We’re both adults – we can kiss who we want.”

               “But this is so exciting,” Jongdae squealed. “Tell us all the deats.”

               “Are we middle school females? Like, seriously Jongdae? ‘Deats’?” Kyungsoo groaned at his roommate.

               “Yes! Tell us the details!” Baekhyun yelled.

               “We just kissed a bit,” Kyungsoo shrugged.

               “Who kissed who?”

               “I kissed him,” Kyungsoo mumbled, getting squeals in response from the two excited boys. “He’s a pretty good kisser – not gonna lie. I thought dogs would be keen on shoving their tongues down your throat, but he was actually pretty good.”

               “How far did you two go?” Jongdae asked.

               “We just kissed!” Kyungsoo snapped at him.

               “Okay,” Jongdae grumbled, turning back to his textbook.

               “Are you guys gonna go out again?” Baekhyun asked.

               “Yeah,” Kyungsoo nodded. “He’s supposed to text me about another date.”

               “Awe,” Baekhyun cooed. “You two are so cute.”

               “Yeah, yeah,” Kyungsoo waved off the corgi, but he couldn’t help agreeing – he and Chanyeol were really cute together.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HELL YEAH I FINALLY FINISHED THIS.
> 
> If you weren't around to see the author's note that was originally the "Chapter 5" then;  
> I got a new laptop while I was writing this and for some reason it wasn't set to autosave documents, and I lost almost 7k of the finale for this. I've been struggling to rewrite it ever since. Smut is HELLA fucking hard for me to write because I am asexual and don't have any experience, so it was SUCH A STRUGGLE rewriting smut that I was actually proud of.
> 
> SO, I decided to scrap my previous idea and go in a completely different direction.
> 
> It also made this fic go from MATURE to TEEN - just a heads up if you didn't notice that before.
> 
> But, I'm pretty proud of how this turned out so I hope you all don't mind! It stayed sickeningly adorable too so A+ to me, that's what I was going for with this fic.
> 
> Anyway, thanks to everyone whose been reading since the beginning, started halfway through, or only found this once it was done!
> 
> <3

Kyungsoo didn’t manage to see Chanyeol before winter break began.

               Between rushing around to finals, studying in between, trying to nourish his stomach when he didn’t forget to eat, and trying to pack before his parents came to pick him up, he just didn’t manage to see the Great Dane before his dad’s truck was packed and he was heading back to the quiet little town he called home. Of course, he hadn’t seen much of his roommate or Baekhyun either – it was a weird couple of days. His winter break was four weeks long, and would be filled with working and reading. Kyungsoo also managed to break his phone in the hectic mess – meaning he had to pick up a new one at the very start of the break.

               It was about a week into the vacation, when he suddenly had the urge to talk to the dog hybrid, that he realized he no longer had the other’s number – and had never even gotten his snapchat. Kyungsoo was at a loss at what to do since Jongdae was out of the country for the break and he also lost Baekhyun’s number. Kyungsoo sighed and figured he and Chanyeol would just have more to talk about after the break if they didn’t talk during it.

               By the time move-back-in day came, Kyungsoo was ready to head back to campus. His job was becoming dull and boring, and he didn’t really have any friends to hang out with while he was home, so as the throng of students and the tall buildings of the residence halls came into view, he felt almost giddy. “Is Jongdae already back?” his mom asked, turning in her seat to look at him.

               “I think he moved back earlier this morning,” Kyungsoo nodded as his dad pulled up to the designated parking spots. Kyungsoo grabbed his suitcase and bag – the only things he brought back during the break – kissed his mom goodbye and raced up the stairs to his room. The door was propped open and music was already blaring from inside – Jongdae was definitely already back.

               Kyungsoo’s ears twitched at the rap music that was piercingly loud the closer he got, before he finally shoved the door fully open with his foot and stepped into his room. Jongdae was loudly yelling the lyrics (badly) and dancing around the room, tail swaying in time with the beat, as he organized his things back into their proper places. Baekhyun was sprawled across his boyfriend’s bed – when was he not? – also screeching the lyrics. Kyungsoo suddenly forgot why he was excited to come back to school.

               “Kyungsoo!” The corgi screamed when he noticed the tabby standing in the doorway looking slightly exasperated. Baekhyun scrambled to his feet, throwing himself heavily against Kyungsoo’s chest for a hug. Kyungsoo grumbled before giving him a half-hearted squeeze in return. “How was your break?” Baekhyun yelled to him over the music.

               “Fine,” he responded simply, glaring over at Jongdae slightly. “Dude! Turn the music down!”

               “What?” Jongdae yelled back, cupping a hand over his ear.

               “Turn it down!” Kyungsoo yelled. “You’re so obnoxious!”

               Jongdae laughed before putting the music down a few notches so they could sort of hear each other talking. “How was your break?” Jongdae asked, pulling Kyungsoo into a side hug and nudging his nose against the tabby’s cheek.

               “Fine,” Kyungsoo shrugged. “I just worked a bunch. How was Australia?”

               “So nice!” Jongdae cooed and flew into a detail description of his trip as Kyungsoo unpacked. The cat and his boyfriend took turns going between telling their own stories from break. Apparently Baekhyun had attempted getting a job and failed miserably, so stayed at the frat house most of the time since it was ‘boring without Jongdae around.’

               “Did you see Chanyeol over break at all?” Baekhyun questioned.

               Kyungsoo shook his head, “I broke my phone and lost all my contacts.” Baekhyun blinked before exchanging glances with Jongdae who also looked baffled.

               “You could have asked me for it,” Baekhyun laughed.

               “I don’t have yours either though,” Kyungsoo shrugged. “I’ll just see him tonight or tomorrow or something – it’s not like we’re officially together; there’s no need for us to be all clingy like you two are already.”

               “Yeah but like, maybe he’s upset cause he thinks you forgot about him?” Jongdae suggested.

               “Did he say something like that?” Kyungsoo asked with a raised eyebrow. 

               Baekhyun twisted his hands together, “Maybe?”

               “I didn’t mean to not talk to him though!” Kyungsoo groaned. “What did he say?”

               “He was just worried cause you hadn’t spoken to him,” Baekhyun shrugged. “He was too scared to text you first.”

               Kyungsoo groaned, “You should have told him to just message me if he was so worried. I’ll just explain tonight when I see him.” Baekhyun and Jongdae shared another silent conversation with their eyes before running off to continue unpacking Jongdae’s things so Kyungsoo couldn’t ask what they were thinking of.

               “Hey guys,” Kyungsoo turned to the loud purr and saw Yixing standing in the doorway, his shoulder propped up against the frame. Junmyeon stood behind him and waved at them. “Nice to see you all again, none of you dropped out?” Baekhyun laughed loudly at the cat.

               “Nope, you guys aren’t gonna get rid of us that easily!” The corgi grinned.

               “We don’t want to get rid of you,” Junmyeon defended. “Just your shitty music.” Jongdae screeched in retaliation and dove into an explanation of how great his music was and ‘it needs to be played loud to get the full effect!’ Kyungsoo just rolled his eyes and went back to making his bed.

 

               Kyungsoo didn’t manage to see Chanyeol until the next day when he spotted him sitting in the front of his world history class. Deciding to go up and say hello after class, Kyungsoo kept his eye on the tall Great Dane, and rushed to his side when the professor finally decided his introduction was done for the day.

               “Hey, Chaneyol,” Kyungsoo tried to smile sweetly as he greeted the older. Chanyeol looked at him, blinking in confusion as though he had no idea who Kyungsoo was.

               “Oh,” Chanyeol paused. “Hey, Kyungsoo, what’s up?” Kyungsoo couldn’t help feeling his full name sounded strange coming from the taller’s mouth. The small cat opened his mouth to continue their conversation when the tall dog turned to the guy next to him, “Oh, dude, I’m coming with you.” He turned to Kyungsoo, brushing him off easily, “I’ll see you later, Kyungsoo.” And Kyungsoo watched him walk away with another dog hybrid. His ears drooped against his head.

 

               “I think Chanyeol is avoiding me,” Kyungsoo deadpanned to Baekhyun and Jongdae who were in his room – as usual.

               “Why?” Jongdae asked, swiveling in his chair to look at his roommate.

               “Every time I say hello or try to talk to him he totally brushes me off,” Kyungsoo huffed, throwing his backpack on his bed and falling onto it. “First in history class, then I saw him in the campus center, then the library, and just now I went and actually got a goddamn coffee and he made the other guy working do my order! What did I do wrong?”

               “Maybe it’s cause you ignored him all winter break,” Baekhyun reminded him.

               “I didn’t mean to!” Kyungsoo yelled in frustration. “And I can’t explain that to him if he doesn’t let me talk to him!”

               “I think you hurt his feelings, Soo,” Jongdae admitted.

               Kyungsoo stomped his foot angrily, and immediately regretted it because he felt about five years old. He crossed his arms again before turning on Baekhyun. “Can’t you explain to him what happened and tell him to talk to me so I can explain myself?”

               Baekhyun looked awkwardly down at his homework that he’d been ignoring before being spoken directly too. “I kinda already tried to,” He frowned. “He thought I was making it up to cover for you – I mean, it is pretty suspicious Soo. You two go on a few dates, kiss a bit, and then suddenly your phone _happens_ to break and you lose all your contacts? That doesn’t happen very often anymore – most people can recover their contacts, so it’s a little too convenient. It really does seem like you were done with him and made something up to get him off your back.”

               “But I didn’t,” Kyungsoo yelled, feeling his blood boil in anger. He rounded on his roommate, “You know I didn’t do that, right?”

               “I mean,” Jongdae trailed off. “It _is_ a little convenient.”

               “But I told you guys how I really was interested in him,” Kyungsoo said, baffled.

               “Not really,” Baekhyun hummed. “We insinuated that you liked him, but you never actually said anything.” Kyungsoo thought for a moment and realized Baekhyun was correct – they hadn’t had any sort of ‘girl talk’ about Chanyeol, and he’d never actually showed how interested he really was to them. Maybe it did look suspicious.

               “I’m gonna go talk to him,” Kyungsoo decided, scooping his coat back up and tugging it onto his arms. “I’ll be back later,” he called over his shoulder before slamming the dorm door behind him.

               He felt like he was getting some weird looks as he sped through campus, glaring ahead of him and walking much faster than anyone else. It would have made sense, he was late for class or something, but classes had ended for the day. So he looked like he was in a rush to get nowhere. But, he ignored the confused looks of different hybrids and continued to race to the dog’s frat house.

               It was a freaking Wednesday at five in the afternoon, so the fact that there seemed to be a party already happening confused him. Leave it to college students to get fucked up on a Wednesday.

               Kyungsoo ignored the people gathered at the front of the house, laughing a little too loud, and shoved his way through the front door. “Woah,” he was grabbed by the shoulder. “You can’t just invite yourself in,” a tall (goddamnit why are dogs always so tall??) lab hybrid frowned at him. Kyungsoo didn’t recognize him.

               “I’m friends with Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo hissed. “I need to go see him.”

               “Uh huh, sure you are,” the dog rolled his eyes. “Just wait here a second,” the guy narrowed his eyes but Kyungsoo pouted and stayed where he was. The guy could definitely punch him into next week if he wanted to.

               “Oh hey, it’s the kitty again.” Kyungsoo turned and actually felt relief at seeing the familiar greyhound. Seho? Sehun? Something like that. “What are you doing here?”

               “I came to see Chanyeol but some guy said I couldn’t come in,” Kyungsoo scowled.

               “Ah,” Sehun nodded in understanding. “Well, lucky for you, Chanyeol is outside – not in the house,” Sehun laughed and pointed his thumb over his shoulder. “He’s in the backyard if you wanna go find him.” Kyungsoo’s face slipped into a happy smile and he gratefully thanked the taller before racing off to the backyard.

               He wasn’t sure what he expected a frat “backyard” to be but it shocked in for a second at the lack of grass and the amount of beer cans and cigarettes littering the dirt ground. There was a volleyball net set up that was drooping and had definitely seen better days, and lawn chairs strewn around – some upright with dogs lounging in them still dressed in heavy clothing, and some were on their sides or completely broken. Kyungsoo swallowed thickly before glancing around at the dogs gathered. He spotted the one he recognized and ran over to Chanyeol who was lounging against the side of the house with a few other of the dogs – one he recognized as the poodle Tao.

               “Chanyeol!” Kyungsoo called out, feeling confident as he stomped over to the taller. Chanyeol turned to him, looking confused, his eyes glassy and unfocused on him.

               “Kyungsoo?” Chanyeol tilted his head slowly.

               “We need to talk,” Kyungsoo demanded, glaring up at Chanyeol. Kyungsoo suddenly covered his nose against the harsh smell, gagging to himself. “What the fuck – are you high?” He questioned, only recognizing that smell from when Baekhyun had come into their room smelling like pot and blamed it on being at the frat for too long.

               “Can we deal with this later?” Chanyeol questioned before turning back to the conversation he had been in the middle of. “Cats can be so selfish.” Kyungsoo was sure Chanyeol had meant to whisper that, but he heard it loud and clear. His ears twitched in anger before he grabbed Chanyeol to turn him to face him again.          

               “Why are you avoiding me?” He yelled. Chanyeol flinched and frowned at him, not responding. “I didn’t mean to not talk to you over winter break! My phone broke and I didn’t have any contacts – I thought I’d just be able to talk to you when we got back but _you_ haven’t let me explain myself!” Kyungsoo explained in a rush. Chanyeol shook him off and ignored him again.

               Kyungsoo stood rooted in place, mouth opening and closing like a fish as he watched Chanyeol go right back to talking to the other dogs, his back to Kyungsoo. He felt the prick of tears at the back of his eyes, but refused to spill tears over such a ridiculous situation. He turned on his heel and marched back the way he’d come, only slowing and eventually stopping when the frat house was out of sight behind him. Maybe this was his fault – Kyungsoo thought – maybe it was his fault for always being so cold to everyone, for always brushing people off or hissing at them or judging them for being a dog rather than a cat. Maybe him breaking his phone was the universe telling him he fucked up somewhere along the line and this was his karma.

 

               By the time he trudged up the five flights of stairs and shoved open his dorm room, Baekhyun was asleep where he left him and Jongdae was still working diligently at his desk. Sometimes Kyungsoo forgot Jongdae actually cared about school and actually worked hard. Baekhyun had droop dripping down his chin.

               Jongdae turned at Kyungsoo (quietly) closing the door and shoving his coat away from his body again. “Hey,” Jongdae whispered, motioning for Kyungsoo to come sit. “How’d it go?”

               “He completely ignored me,” Kyungsoo mumbled. “I guess I was hoping it’d be like in the movies and I’d confront him and he’d forgive me and we’d kiss and ride off into the sunset or something.” Jongdae muffled a chuckle behind his hand. “He was high as shit when I found him and didn’t even seem to register what I was trying to say, and then he turned his back to me and continued chatting with his friends instead.” Jongdae hummed in understanding, looking upset for his friend. “I feel like this is the world getting back at me for being a dick.”

               “Well,” Jongdae thought for a moment. “You _could_ be a bit nicer sometimes,” He pointed out. “Like when Chanyeol was first trying to talk to you, you could have just talked back to him and been nice.”

               “You think I don’t know that now?” Kyungsoo sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. “I don’t know how to fix this, Dae,” he whimpered. “I really like him.”

               “Wow,” Jongdae raised an eyebrow. “I never thought the day would come where Do Kyungsoo actually admitted he liked someone.” Kyungsoo punched him, getting Jongdae to giggle at him in retaliation. “Did you tell Chanyeol that you liked him?”

               “I explained to him why I didn’t text him over break,” Kyungsoo sighed.

               “But did you say you liked him?” Jongdae repeated.

               Kyungsoo thought for a moment, “No?” he questioned, unable to remember if he actually said the exact words. “But I thought it was implied with how I went all the way to his frat and was trying to get him to forgive me.”

               Jongdae sighed, “You have a lot of trouble saying how you fell, ya know. I thought you hated me for years after we became friends – I only figured it out after your mom told me you never shut up about me and how I was your best friend.” Kyungsoo scowled and made a mental note to scold his mom for telling Jongdae such a thing – even though it was completely true. “You need to tell him _exactly_ how you feel – no sugar coating it, no beating around the bush, and no assuming that it’s implied. He doesn’t know you as well as me and Baekhyun, he probably thinks you were just playing with me and don’t actually like him.” Kyungsoo nodded slowly and looked down at his hands.

               “Chanyeol still really likes you.” Kyungsoo and Jongdae both jumped and looked over at Baekhyun who was sleepily yawning and rubbing at his eyes. “I can tell he does – he doesn’t get over his feelings that easily, and he always perks up when I mention you, even now. I think Jongdae is right that you just need to tell him how you feel and he’ll believe you.”

               Kyungsoo scowled as he felt his stomach twisting in knots. Apologizing was one thing – that took a lot for him to do on its own – kissing was another thing – physical affection and showing how he felt like that was easier – but actually _voicing_ his feelings? That sounded impossible. He wasn’t sure he could make his tongue obey him when he tried. “Okay,” he nodded slowly. “I’ll try,” he swallowed thickly, feeling like his tongue was already getting caught in his throat. “I’m not very good at it though, what if I mess up again?”

               “You won’t,” Baekhyun smiled at him. “If you really do care about Chanyeol, he’ll see that.”

 

               Kyungsoo decided to tell Chanyeol his feelings the next time he saw him. But, he saw the dog at history class, then the dining hall, then across the way while walking through campus and his legs felt like jello and he just simply couldn’t get himself to speak up. It wasn’t for a few days that he finally saw Chanyeol alone, eating lunch out in the beginning-Spring sun at the picnic tables outside the dining hall. The dog was scrolling on his phone and smiling to himself around his chicken sandwich and Kyungsoo couldn’t think he’d ever seen anyone cuter.

               “Chanyeol,” He forced himself to call out, and waved when the dog looked up. Chanyeol’s face remained passive and he looked back down at his phone. Kyungsoo felt like a mouse trap had clicked down on his throat. “Can we talk?” He asked, walking up shyly to Chanyeol’s table, feeling like a little high school girl asking to sit with the captain of the football team. Chanyeol didn’t respond so Kyungsoo sat down anyway. He could feel his tail swishing with nerves, his ears twitching unconsciously. “I’m really sorry I didn’t talk to you over the break – my phone broke. I felt really bad I didn’t get to talk to you, and I was really hoping we’d be able to catch up afterward, but I can understand if you’re mad. I just really – what, wait, where are you going?” Kyungsoo asked in panic as Chanyeol swept his things into his bag and made to get up. Kyungsoo watched him in awe as he shouldered his backpack on and stood. “Chanyeol, wait!” He called as Chanyeol’s long legs pulled him further away from the table. Kyungsoo stood quickly. “I like you!” He screamed, way louder than necessary, but it made the Great Dane stop. “I really, _really_ like you!” Kyungsoo yelled again, feeling his heart pounding all the way down to his toes. “I know I can be a bitch and you have no reason to like me – I have no idea why you would! But I really like you and I can’t let this end without telling you that!”

               Kyungsoo was aware of the people staring at them as they walked by, and how it probably looked like either a scene from a drama or a pathetic middle school display, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. He only had eyes for Chanyeol in that moment.

               Chanyeol turned slightly and Kyungsoo could see him struggling to find something to say. When he fully turned the Great Dane was biting his lip, his tail and ears drooping. “Do you actually?” He said with a shaky voice. “Because it seemed like you decided it would be fun to play with a guys emotions.”

               “No,” Kyungsoo shook his head quickly, wishing he could reach out. “I didn’t do that – I would never do that. I really do like you, I’m just really bad with words,” He looked down at the ground for a moment, trying to gather his thoughts. “If you don’t like me anymore that’s fine, but I needed you to know.” Kyungsoo could feel his hands shaking as Chanyeol walked back over to him, not touching him, just looming above him.

               “I like you a lot too,” He mumbled. When Kyungsoo finally got the guts to look up at his face he saw the dog’s eyes were closed as though he was trying to figure out what to say too. “I just couldn’t understand why you would drop me off the face of the earth. We didn’t see each other for a while even before break started, and then all break you didn’t return my texts and didn’t text me. I couldn’t get it out of my head that everyone was right and that cats just like to play games – and they can’t care about other people. I didn’t want to think that, but it was the only think running through my mind.”

               “I’m so sorry,” Kyungsoo hung his head. “I wasn’t lying about what happened though – my phone really did break.”

               “You could have come to the frat,” Chanyeol mumbled. “You knew I would be there.”

               Kyungsoo’s ears twitched and he blinked. Chanyeol was right – his house was only half an hour from campus. Kyungsoo could have come visit at any time. “You’re right,” Kyungsoo whispered. “I’m sorry, I should have come explain myself. I really did want to see you, but,” Kyungsoo swallowed again. “I was worried I would be bothering you.”

               “Bothering me?” Chanyeol raised an eyebrow.

               “You’re so much older than me, at least grade wise,” Kyungsoo muttered. “And you’re in a frat, and you work so much, and you work so hard all the time, I couldn’t help feeling like I was a kid next to you sometimes.” Chanyeol laughed at that, and Kyungsoo was glad to hear it again. “I should have come to see you though, so, I’m sorry.”

               “I forgive you,” Chanyeol smiled at him, and Kyungsoo’s ears perked up again. He couldn’t help smiling back. “And if you’re telling the truth, and you do really like me, then,” Chanyeol paused before breaking into a face-splitting grin, his tail going a mile a minute. “I really like you too.”

               Kyungsoo laughed at just how dog-like Chanyeol looked before nodding. “I do, I do really like you.”

               Kyungsoo wasn’t ready for the dog to lean down and kiss him fully against his mouth for a moment before wrapping an arm around his waist. “Then, wanna go out tonight?” Chanyeol asked giddily.

               Kyungsoo laughed, “Sure.”

 

               “Oh yeah, whose the disgusting couple now?” Baekhyun pointed his chopsticks at the pair.

               Kyungsoo glanced over at the corgi and scowled at him. “What do you mean?”

               “You’re literally feeding each other – _in public_ ,” Baekhyun pointed out.

               Kyungsoo looked down at the chopsticks he had poised in the air, holding a piece of sushi out to Chanyeol who had just been about to eat it. “You’re just jealous,” Kyungsoo decided before letting Chanyeol take the sushi and laughed at his boyfriend’s happy face as he chewed. “We’re the new power couple.”

               “Hell no you’re not!” Jongdae protested. “We’ll always be the alpha couple,” Jongdae said, holding out a fist for Baekhyun to fist bump.

               “No, we’re definitely cuter,” Chanyeol defended, inching closer and tightening his grip around Kyungsoo’s waist. “We’re not as gross as you two,” Chanyeol laughed. “Plus we got the whole tall-short, dog-cat thing going on – super cute. You two are both just short.”

               Jongdae and Baekhyun exploded into protests, insisting that it was _cuter_ that they were the same height. Kyungsoo just rolled his eyes and ate another piece of sashimi. Chanyeol’s fingers suddenly tightened on his hip, making Kyungsoo look up in confusion, only for his boyfriend’s lips to be on his own. Kyungsoo internally rolled his eyes before kissing back, only dully hearing Baekhyun and Jongdae yelling at them in the background. He grinned at Chanyeol when the dog pulled away.

               “You two are together for six fucking months and you think you’re the alpha couple,” Baekhyun just shook his head. “You’re still newbies – still in the honey moon phase.”

               “Yeah,” Jongdae nodded in agreement. “Try _years_ ,” He held his fist up for another fist bump.

               Kyungsoo just smiled and shook his head. “I think you two are delusional. Chanyeol and I are cuter.”

               “Hell yes we are,” Chanyeol mumbled against his head, kissing the top of his head.

               Baekhyun and Jongdae sighed, giving up, and turned back to their sushi.

               “Wanna come back to the frat house tonight?” Chanyeol whispered to Kyungsoo, making his tail twitch.

               “I guess,” Kyungsoo shrugged as though it didn’t make a difference to him. But hell yes it did – Chanyeol finally had his own room now since Tao and Sehun moved to room together, which meant they didn’t have to deal with roommates.

               “Can you two stop being gross and planning your sexcapades in front of us?” Baekhyun screwed up his face.

               “Baekhyun,” Kyungsoo said calmly. “Just how many times have I walked in on my roommate fucking you?” He raised an eyebrow as Baekhyun sputtered. “Thought so – so, shut up.” Chanyeol laughed and nuzzled against his temple.

               “You’re adorable,” his boyfriend mumbled.

               “Yeah, I know I am,” Kyungsoo grinned.

               “So humble,” Chanyeol laughed.

               “You love me,” Kyungsoo pouted out his lips for a kiss that he immediately received.

               “That I do,” Chanyeol nodded.

               “Knew it,” Kyungsoo said, getting a punch in return. “What?”

               “You’re supposed to say it back,” Chanyeol whined.

               “Fine,” Kyungsoo rolled his eyes. “I love you.”

               Chanyeol kissed his cheek, “I know you do.”


End file.
